One day Umar came to the Prophet’ s (Peace and Blessings be upon him) house to see him.

The Blessed Prophet lived in a small apartment which bordered his mosque. These apartments

are now included in the beautifully-built Mosque of the Prophet in Madina. But at that time the

walls were built of mud and stones, the roof of palm leaves and stalks and the floors of sand.

The doors gave onto the courtyard and hall of prayer.

Umar came to the door and sought permission to enter.'May Umar bin al-Khattab enter, 0 Prophet of God?' said Umar.

'Yes, come in, Umar,' the Blessed Prophet replied.

Umar entered the room where the Blessed Prophet was resting. He first greeted the Blessed Prophet 'Peace be with you.'

'And with you be peace,' replied the Blessed Prophet

Umar sat down on the floor and began to notice the room for the first time. There was no bed in the room. The Blessed Prophet was lying on a mat Part of his body was on the floor and part on the mat The mat was rough and the floor hard. The marks from the mat were visible on his body. He was Wearing a garmentof rough and coarse cloth. He had a pillow, but the pillow was filled with prickly leaves from a palm tree. There was nothing else in the room, no wardrobe, no rich food to eat, no comfortable mattresses. Instead, in a corner were some berry leaves and a small heap of barley, over which an untreated piece of leather was hanging.

Tears began to well up in Umar's eyes. When the Blessed Prophet saw Umar crying he asked him, 'Why! What are you crying about, Umar?' Umar answered in a bittervoice,'And why shouldn't I cry, 0 Prophet of God? I see your bedding and the marks from the mat on your back; I see all your belongings which amount to nothing, and yet you are the Prophet of God and His chosen Messenger! The emperors of the Byzantine and the Persian empires are living in luxury and comfort. Their thrones are made of gold and their clothing and bedding are made of the finest silks'. Umar waved his arm to illustrate. 'And this is all you have - this is your treasure.'

The Blessed Prophet smiled and looked kindly and affectionately at Umar. 'Are you not happy, 0 Umar that we shall receive our riches and treasures and comforts in the eternal life. The kings of this world have received their full share here, and even this share is going to be useless for them as soon as they depart from this world. Our share is to come later, but once we receive it it will remain with us forever.'

Umar understood then that the government the Blessed Prophet was going to establish was not a government of kings and emperors but a government of the servants of Allah who live not for this world and its transient rewards and comforts, but for the world to come, for the everlasting rewards and treasures to be found in the Hereafter.